VDL to deliver 40 electric buses to Oslo’s Unibuss
VDL has received its largest bus order from Scandinavia to date and it comes from Oslo bus operator Unibuss. The Norwegian company carries the lion’s share of the electrification offensive underway in Norway’s capital.
The order Unibuss AS has placed with VDL Bus & Coach includes 40 electric Citeas, or 30 articulated Citeas SLFA-180 Electric and 10 Citeas SLF-120 Electric that will serve the Greater Oslo Region. The first Citeas will be delivered to Unibuss at the end of 2018, and the buses will be put in service in the spring of 2019.
For VDL the contract marks a breakthrough in Europe’s EV paradise. Says Alex de Jong, Business Manager Public Transport VDL Bus & Coach: “Norway is taking big steps and leading the way in Scandinavia when it comes to the transition to zero emission public transport. We at VDL Bus & Coach are proud that with this prestigious order we are contributing to Oslo’s standing as European Green Capital of 2019.”
The order is part of an initiative that will see Oslo procure a total of 70 electric buses. The companies Unibus, Nobina and Norgesbuss will be operating the new vehicles on 13 bus lines in Norway. Overall, Oslo will be running a total of 76 electric buses by 2019 with six stemming from the initial trial that had led to the city’s decision. The project will cost around 88 million euros over the next ten years when Oslo plans to run a zero emission public transport system (we reported).
For the order at hand, the 30 Citeas SLFA-180 Electric with 169 kWh battery pack, will operate on routes 20, 21, 28, 34, 37 and 54 in the centre of Oslo. The Citeas SLF-120 Electric with 127 kWh battery pack, will run on route 74 between Mortensrud in the South and Vika in the city centre of Oslo.
Norway’s capital has been selected as European Green Capital of 2019.
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